Dicker: Dodd-Frank on a Precipice

Dan Dicker talks to Jim Cramer about financial reforms and how they affect banks and the exchanges.

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- I sat down with Jim Cramer to talk about the latest progress of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in implementing Dodd-Frank regulations for the trading and clearing of swaps and other derivatives.

I contend that the implementation of Dodd-Frank represents our generation's "Glass-Steagall" equivalent and will determine whether we are forced to endure another banking crisis like the one in 2008.

This has become such a critical moment for the progress and ultimate success of Dodd-Frank because swaps clearing on regulated exchanges was slated to begin on Monday, and because the problem of global compliance of U.S. banking regulations has created two camps on the implementation of many of these trading and clearing rules.

One camp, on the side of the banks, is to look for another six-month delay in the implementation of derivative trading rules -- they've received one already in December 2012 -- at least, they say, until there can be some agreement among foreign banks and foreign markets in how these dangerous instruments are to be priced.

The other camp, on the side of the regulators, is to get the U.S. banks to comply with new rules and then attack the problem of global compliance afterwards.

The outcome of this battle is of great interest to the banks, which have relied for years on the trading and sales of derivatives to augment profits. It is of equal interest to the exchanges, particularly the CME Group ( CME), which hope to be entering a previously closed market in swaps trading and clearing.

But it is of great interest to me because I believe the practical outcome of Dodd-Frank reforms hang in the balance of this last push at compliance and therefore the likelihood that we will be subject to another bank crisis in our lifetime.

I talk more about this with Jim in the video above.

At the time of publication, Dicker had no positions in securities mentioned.

Dan Dicker has appeared as an energy analyst since 2002 with all the major financial news networks. He has lent his expertise in hundreds of live radio and television broadcasts on CNBC, Bloomberg US and UK and CNNfn.

Dan obtained a bachelor of arts degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1982.